Cole Anderson ’27, a computer science and Chinese major, has been awarded a 2025 Critical Language Scholarship to study Chinese in Tainan, Taiwan.
The CLS program is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State and provides immersive study abroad opportunities for students to learn languages deemed essential to American foreign relations.
Anderson, who is from Charleston, South Carolina, was one of 500 students accepted out of a pool of about 5,000 applicants, according to an announcement about this year’s recipients.
“I was absolutely elated,” Anderson says. “The learning opportunity I’ll be getting is just unparalleled.”
Anderson’s immersion in Chinese started early — his childhood caregiver was Chinese, so he grew up speaking the language.
“When I found out Wofford had a Chinese program, I was very interested. I always felt like it was something I wanted to go back to,” he says.
In his continuing effort to master the language, Anderson attended Middlebury Language School in Vermont last summer and plans to study abroad with Middlebury’s Beijing program his junior year.
Dr. Yongfang Zhang, associate professor of Chinese, says Anderson is an ideal candidate for the Critical Language Scholarship because he’s highly motivated and eager to learn.
“He’s committed to studying Chinese and actively seeks out opportunities to deepen his knowledge,” Zhang says.
Anderson is the sixth Wofford student to be accepted into the CLS program for Chinese. Previous recipients include WestLee Parker ’16, Simon Worthy ’16, Riddick Blocker ’16, Samuel Alford ’19 and Valerie Soto ’23.
A seventh Wofford student, Victoria Nwankudu ’19, was a Critical Language Scholar in Arabic.
Anderson will leave for Tainan in June and spend eight weeks in intensive language instruction. He’ll also participate in cultural excursions and activities to expand his understanding of the history, politics and culture of his host country.
“Learning Chinese has really opened a lot of doors for me,” Anderson says. “I’m looking forward to this next opportunity.”